Amb Hisham Badr Discusses Smart Green Projects with South Sinai Governor

Ambassador Hisham Badr, Assistant Minister of Planning and Economic Development for Strategic Partnerships, Excellence, and Initiatives, and National Coordinator for the National Initiative for Smart Green Projects, met with Major General Khaled Fouda, Governor of South Sinai, to discuss ways of cooperation in the initiative. The meeting was attended by the winners of projects from the governorate and a number of investors.

During the meeting, Ambassador Hisham Badr praised the efforts and support provided by South Sinai Governorate for the initiative, emphasizing the initiative’s commitment to reaching all cities and villages in Egypt. This commitment ensures the participation of all governorates, institutions, and national bodies, applying various governance principles, primarily decentralization, inclusiveness, and transparency at all stages of the initiative.

Badr commended the efforts of South Sinai Governorate and the noticeable development in various cities and villages within the governorate, noting the quality of the projects participating from the governorate that rely on modern technology. He added that the projects in Sharm El-Sheikh, since hosting the COP27 climate change conference, have directly contributed to positioning the city on the global map as a resilient, smart, green city.

Ambassador Hisham Badr stated that the qualification of 53 projects from South Sinai Governorate to the final evaluation stage of the second cycle of the initiative indicates the governorate’s, its workers’, and its citizens’ interest in climate change issues.

Badr also explained that the National Initiative for Smart Green Projects is unprecedented globally. It can turn the climate challenge into an investment opportunity by providing real solutions to climate problems based on technology and rooted in the Egyptian streets. He confirmed the initiative’s support and provision of all means to ensure the success and sustainability of the winning projects, reflecting the Egyptian state’s general approach to making the environmental dimension a key axis of development in line with the objectives of Egypt Vision 2030.

Ambassador Hisham Badr emphasized that the National Initiative for Smart Green Projects provides a range of training courses, consultations, and technological support to the participating projects. He mentioned the preparation of a database and map for all participating projects to link them with investors, noting the participation of approximately 12,000 projects in the first and second cycles of the initiative.

Nermine Sadeq, Executive Director of the National Initiative for Smart Green Projects, reviewed the main features of the initiative and its six categories, along with the conditions and criteria for nomination in each category. She confirmed that the initiative offers local solutions to environmental and climate change problems and urged youth and those with innovative green projects to participate in the upcoming cycle of the initiative, which will be launched soon.

The meeting showcased examples of the success stories of the winning projects in the second cycle of the initiative, most notably the “Basata Camp” project, which won second place in the small local projects category (Decent Life) for South Sinai Governorate. Eng. Sherif Ghamrawi, Chairman of Basata Camp, highlighted the project’s development since its win in the second cycle of the initiative, listing the various types of support winners receive, including technical support, consultations, opportunities to present projects on national and international platforms, participation in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, and networking opportunities with investors and national and international organizations.

The visit also included an inspection of the Unified Security Monitoring Building in Sharm El-Sheikh, where Ambassador Hisham Badr expressed his happiness with the progress and the level of technological and technical advancement in the center.